System of gas control



sept. 2, 1924.

C.. F'. KETTERZNG ET AL l SYSTEM OF' GAS CONTROL Filed Fb. s, 1917 2 Sheets-Shut 1 sept. 2. 1924. 15131292 C. F'. KETTERING ET AL SYSTEM OF GAS CONTROLA Filed Feb. 5, i917 2 shun-sinn 80h 8 I i l yg y f =|lii llillf-f-L-m- 40a @Hman El!!! C Y V@ l 4/ 4,? 43 4,7/ .aww/Ue @mz jg I 87 MEL/255.575

www 5g? A d] a remain open Patented Sept'. 1, 1924.

UNITED STATES' l 1,501,292 PATENT OFFICE;

camas r. xE'r'rmirNG AND WILLIAM acnnYsr, or DAYTON, omo, assIGNoas, BY imma-ASSIGNMENTS, 'ro nmcofnrcn'r COMPANY, or DAYTON, onto, a con srsfrma or Gas CONTROL.

Application and February a, i917. semi No. 146,542.

' 10 Thev present i. invention relates to fuel control systems for internal-combustion engines and particularly for systems-of con- `trolfo'r aseous fuel, such as natural gas.

Oneo ject of the invention is 'to admit gaseous fuel automatically to'the engine -intakewhen theengine is in `theprocess of fbeing started.

A further object-is to shut-olf the' supply Y of fuel automatically when the engine stops.

either by reason of control b by reason of the operation-o an automatic` stopping device, or by accident such as a` an operator,

temporary discontinuance in the gas supply or failure of the ignition apparatus to funcl tion. In any'event the dangerous escape and waste of'g'as through the enginef is prevented.

One manner of carrying out these objects is to provide the. engine intake with a valve normally closing said intake when the engine is at rest, and to, provide that when theignition apparatus is brought into operation at the startin of the engine 4this valve will beautomatically vo ened and will substantia ly continuously during. the operation of the engine, so that the flow of gas into the engine intake will i v'not-be'afl'ected by the operation of the ignition fsystenu Then it is provided that -40 when the engine is .stopped by the ignition s stem becoming. inoperative, this valve siiall automatica ly close.

In this connection it'is'provided that-the tendency for the supply lof gas to fion' into tlie engine intakemshall assist in closing the valve'upon the stopping of the engine.

AIn carryin A includin an internal-combustion lengine connected with a`dynaino operable as a motor-on current froma-battery to start the engine or as a generator to charge the b atter it is referably provided that the contro ler which connects the battery with the out the foregoing'objects in connection with a battery charging system d namo for engine starting purposes shall aso connect thev battery with the ignition apparatus and with an electrically operated valve Ato* open up the engine `in take to the fuel supply. AIt is provided that thecontroller shall maintain Vthese connections during the generating operation of the dynamo, but that'the controller shall operateautomatically upon a tendency-iortlie battery to dischargethrough vthe dynamo, 'to break these connections to prevent battery4 dis:- charge. and theA escape :and waste. of fuel. This battery discharge would #tend to occur 'upon a certain decrease in'engi'ne speed or upon `failure of the `dynamo, to Afunction properly 'at lnormal engine speed. A further object of the presentf invention is to provide means for 1automatically.con-

trolling' the flow of fuel `vto a'combustion engine, wherein the mechanical elements'of said means will be compact in structure 'and readily manufactured at small cost,

Further' objects' and dvantages ofvth-e `present invention. will bev apparent .from

the following description, reference being `had to the accompanying drawing, where"- vin preferred embodiments of the 'presentinvention are'. clearly illustrated.-

' In the drawings A j Fig; 1 is a diagrammatic view illustrating the en ineand the electrical circuits and connections embodied in one form of the resent invention but showing only the ref" ation of the invention to van ignition cirv cuit.

Fig. 3 is a view similar to 2, of aA modified form .of the present invention.

F ig. t is a View similar to Fig. 2 of a further modification.

Fi 5 is a wiring diagram showing the. relation of the invention' to ignition and battery charging circuits.

Referring to the drawing, and more a1*- Vticularly to Figs. 1 and 2, the numera 20 designates a combined gas engine-and electric unit of substantiallynthe saine type as that shown, 'described and' claimed in our Patent No. 1,341,327, dated May 25, 1920, and our co-pending application Serial No.

kerosene, etc., is especially adapted to operful and of lowcost,

120,098, filed september 14, 191e. The ima...

includes engine .20 and 'dynamo 20".

The present type. of en e, however, in#

stead of operating on' fue such as gasoline,

ate .with'natural gas as fuel. That is, in communities wherein natural gas is'plentiit has been found advantageous to provide for the use of this gas as a fuel -for the engine.4 y

Itis particularly advantageous where fuel I' 'of this type is employed, that the flow thereof to the engine automatically controlled. That is, as soon as itis desired to bringthe engine`.into operation the flow of gas should be readily permitte However, itis of greater importance that as soon as the engine ceases to operate, either through being stopped by \an attendant or by being stopped inadvertently,-f the flow. ofg'as should be eectuallyshut oiandwprevent` ed from Vescaping to the engine, .which i|' y then in a non-operative-conditiom 1' 1' The numeral 21- designates-as apwhole a fuel mixer including a-.casing 29, provided with an air inlet 2,2 which is manually controlled by means of the-sliiftable 'valve disc 23, provided with a handle 24. This casing being formed at the valvev seat ,which the solenoid may extend.

. zlhis coil 26 is-l covered by means of a hous- 28, suitablysec'ilred to the casing 29, by a 29 is preferabzlfy of such conformatin that a vdepression is ormed in one slde thereof, 'as at 25, and is adapted to providea recesisinto nectel 'vith a'suitableh C su p y y a pipe -or o t er means. oneentrilt): with this Anozzle,and adapted to slidably't therein, is,a core 33 provided with a reduced head valve portion .34 has av ground tit with a portion'31p`rovided in the nozzle 27, whichv will eiiectually reveut the passage ofgas from tliejnozze to the mixin chamber, at such times as the core is in the position shown in Fig 2.

`It is apparent that the nozzle 27 supports the coil 26 grudthat the honsing28 assists 1n' supporting the nozzle 27.

extended end poi'tion 35 of the core 33 projects through the open. end of the nozignition ycontact 36, contact 37l -wire 48, gas .val

'of the mixing chamber.

necting the battery the casing 29, and e interior of said is provided with a source of fuel gas.

or valve portion 34. Thisv g' during battery charging and to zle at 31 and through the opposite side of the casing 29 which acts as a guidefor the core. The end portion 35 is threaded-to receive a nut 35* which serves as a-stop to limit the upward movement ofthe core 33. By changing the position of nut 35, the amount of opening of the gas valve may be varied to vary the speed of the engine. In this manner the .justed to vary theelectrical output.-

As has been Stated above, the solenoid coil Powerplant may, be ad ,26 has` certain circuit connections. In Figs.

1 and 1^, thisicoil 26 is shown as interposedv in a branch from the ignition circuit. The' circuit includes battery 45, wire 44,

tlmer 43, wire 42, ignition coil 41, wire 40,`.

moved by handle 37, contact-38, and wire 46 to batte branch from the ignition circuit v ve coil 26V and wire 47.. It

cuit is closed by the operation ofthe handle 37, see Figs. 1

and 1^', the coil 26 will become 45. .The

includes wlllbe seen that as soon as theignition cir`- energized and thereby attract the coref83 and raise the same, end of the nozzle 27 at 31, and

to pass through the nozzle into t This gas will of course become mixed with passed through the air' inlet valve 22, and will then be sucked into der to form the fuel charge.

mentioned coending application, Serial No. 120,098, ed September 14, 1916, the handle 37 controls not only the closingof the ignition circuit, but also the operation.

of the electric unit to start vthe engine.

Fig. 5 shows the controller disclosed in the aforesaid application for connecting the battery with the dynamo, as well as for convwith the ignition apparatus and with the gas valve coil.

As disclosedin said application, and refer-I ring 'tu Fig. 5, thedynamo 2Oh includes armature 70, shunt field 71 and series field 72,

so as Ato open the 'lower' rmit as. e interior the air which is the engine cylinf' As has been clearly set forth in our above- Y and is connected by wire 73 with battery 45,

and by wire 74 which supports handle 37 but 1s insulated therefrom. Contact 75 normallyeugages contact 76 which is connected by wire 77 with a's'pringcontact 75,

with contact 36. Contact 38 is -connected wi a series magnetcoil 78 connected by wire ,9 with ampere-hourmeter 80 connected by wire 81 with battery 45." Amperehour-meter 80 is provided with hand 82 a'ctuated b'y said-meter 80 to rotate clockwise move 4a switch contact 83 out of engagement with contact ,84' after a certain amount of charging has taken place.

Contact 36 is connected with a shunt magnet coil '85 connectedl by wire 86 with wire 73.' Series `field 72 is connected by wire 87 with contact 76. Coil 41 is connected by 13' wire 40* with contact 84. Wire 40 connects A through the fuel mixer.

contact 83 and wire 47 withA contact 37 which is arranged to engage contacts 36 and 38.-

To. start the en ine, handle 37 is moved to separate'contact 5 from contact 76 whereupon the short circuit-around series field 72 will be broken, and to move contact 37 into engagement with'fcontacts`36 and '38, whereupon the dynamo20b will be connected with the :battery45 and will.. operate as a cumulative compound motor. At the same time the vignition devices 41,?f3 and the gas valve coil 26 will be connectedwith the'battery, Ignition for theenginewill he provided and the gas valve will .be opened.' After the-.engine becomes-.self-operative and the dynamo generates a voltage in-excess of battery. voltage, the magnet coils 78 and will act cumulativelv to h'old the contact 37l in engagement with contacts 36 and 38` in o rderto maintain the circuit connec-j tion between the battery and the dynamo.

. y during the battery charging operation. 25

Incase the engine speed should decrease belowa cer'tainamount so that the battery would discharge 'through thegdynamo, the

. coils 78 and.85 will act in opposition to one another with the'result that the contact 3`7-* will no longer remain in engagement with contacts36. and 38 but will drop awav therefrom to disconnect the battery from the dy.-

namo, fromthe ignition apparatus and from.

the' gas valve coil. When this occursthe gas valve'will close automatically and 'gpre-v vent escape of gas through the engine-or Stopping of the engine might occur in case of a substantial deci-'ease in the gas fuel supplv and would occur if the supplv werecut off entirely, as often happens in the case of separating contacts 83, 84. The engine' will stop for lack of ignition` Escape of gas will be prevented by Athe operation of the automatic gas valve as previously described.

In the modified form of the invention shown in Fig. 3', the nozzle 50 through which gas enters the mixing chamber is formed integrally with the casing 29, and is provided with a valve seat 50. Casing 29* supports a flexible diaphragm 53 supporting magnet armature disc 51-which in turn supports a valve 52 cooperating with the Se'at 50.- Casmixture 'of the is underA atmosp air passing 'through the opening-63, and also ing-29* housing 54 within which 'is mounted-.a core'55 supporting 4a. magnet coil 56, and a spring 57 for yieldingly maintain@ in valve 52 in closed 4position'.

ow,.as soon` as the magnet 56fi`n--thisk form of the inventionis energized, it will attract the disc 51 Aand thereby iiexthe diaphragm toward -the core 55'and thus lift the. valve 52,'-to such a position 'as toreadi5l' permit the 'tlowof'gas throughvthe nozzle An adjusting screw -55"'is p rovidedforre ulatingthe throw of the diaphragm 5331 disc 451, and the valve -52. -Adjustin just-l screw 55' is for thesamel urpose as a ing the nut 35 shown in ig. 2.A

In order to eliminate any' objectionable efl'ect of the air which .passes tothe mixing 23, a guard inthe shape-of the flange 58 is provided whiclrdeflects the air from passing directly over the opening through whichV valve chamber.

the gas enters` t-hewmixin rchamber through the openings 22 in the disc This flange arrangement aso facilitates the 'I ing chamber.

In Fig, .4, there islarranged a' diaphragm which is actuated by'means of atmospheric airiand-gas within the mixpressure control, as. compared with the de` creasing pressure 1n the'mixmg chamber; due

tothe suction effect of the That is, piston, all of the contents'of ,the mixing chamber are sucked into the engine cylinder,

l engine piston.. on thesuction stroke of the engine and for a short interval the pressure within said mixing chamber is below that of atmospheric pressure. This'nozzle opening isof suicientsize to permit a suiclent amount of gas to pass through thenozzle 64 to the mixing chamber for them'ext fuel charge. i

.In the structure shown in -F ig. 4, a r- .tion of the fuel mixer casing 29I whic i is open at '60, is enclosed by means of the' diaphragm 61, which is secured to thewalls of the casing in any suitable manner. Directly above 'this diaphragm there is a cover or casing 62. which is r'ovded with a small opening to the atmosp ere, as at .63.

- -It will be apparent that when thev fuelv i mixer is connected withfan internal-combus-v tion engine such as, for example, a four cycle engine, the pressure in -t'h'e mixing -valve chamber will be redu'ced. slightly below atl' mospheric pressure. This will rmitthe flexing of the diaphragm' 61, whic of course eric pressure, due to the thereby depresses the valve 65, to permit the fuel to flow through the nozzle 64 into the casing 29.

Now, as soon-as the pressure in the casingV 29l reaches substantially atmospheric pressure, it will t`end to slightly raise the diaphragm 61, but because of the s all diameter of the opening 63, themove lnt of the valve 65 will not be -suliicient to clbse 'o'f' thez-nozzle-M; previoii'sitogenginea, the combination with a mixing the nextsuction stroke, 'atlwhich tinie the;A pressure-in the, cas' 29 willagain-be d'ecreased below that of the atniosphere.- Y

The electrical connections shown in Figs.- 1 and .5 are equally a plicable to the struc- Ature shown fin either' igs. 2 or 3.

It will be noted that these electrical cnnectiqns are such that the gas valve coil is controlled independently of the ignitil Y timer. This arrangement is advantageous in that the gas valve remains continuously Aopen during the operation of the' 'engine to permit'g'as to flow substantially uninterrupted to'the intake 'of the engine. The gas is therefore present in the engine intake `under substantially undiminished pressure to be -admittedto the cylinder at the proper time. y c

With regard to the structure shown in F 4, it will of course be understood that no electrical connections are required, the

control of this apparatus depending entirely upon the continued operation of the'engine.

While the embodiments herein shown and described constitute preferred embodiments of one-form' of the invention, it is to be understood that other forms might be adopt,-

edand various changes and alterations made in the Shape, size, and proportion of the elements therein without departing from the h chamber casing havin spirit and scope of the invention. What we claim is as follows:

. 1. In afuel mixer for internal-combustion engines, the combination with a mixing g an' air inlet; ofa fuel nozzle ixtending into said casing, and

' provided withra valve seat; .a valve slidable within said nozzle and cooperating witlisaid aient; and an electromagnet surrounding said nozzle and cooperating with said valve.-

2. In a fuel mixer for internal-combustion engines, the combination with a mixing niber casing having an air inlet; of a fuel nozzle. extending into said casing and supported thereby and provided with,a valve seat on the interior thereof; a valve slidable within said nozz'le and cooperating with said-valve seat; and an electromagnet surrounding and supportedby said nozzle and cooperat with said valve.

A8. In a el mixer for internal-combustion I' noz'zle'extending into said .casing and sup- 55 ported thereby and rovided with a valve seat on the interior thereof; a valve slidable within said nozzle and cooperating with said valve seat; 'an electromagnet surrounding and supported bysaid nozzle and cooperating with said valve; and a magnet housing :surrounding said magnet and. assisting in supporti'n said nozzl 4. In a el .mixer for internal-combustion engines, the combination with a mixin chamber casing having an air inlet; of a fue nozzle extending into said casing and supported thereby and provided with a valve seat on the interior thereof; a -valve slidable within said nozzle and cooperating with' said valve seat and having a threaded exten'- sion projecting outside the casing; an a'dnut cooperating with said extension; and anelectromagnet cooperating with said valve. 5. In a fuel mixer for internal-combustion engines, the combination with a mixing chamber casing having an air inlet and a depressed rtlon providing a recess; df a fuel nozzl extending' through said recess and into said casin said nozzle having a valve seat; a valve s idable within said nozzle and cooperating with said'seat; and a magnet coil projecting into .said 'recess and surrounding said nozzle.

6. In a fuel mixer for internal-combustion engines, the combination with a mixing chamber casing having an air inlet and a depressed-portion roviding a recess; of a fuel nozzle extending through said recess andinto' said casing, said nozzle having a valve seat; a valve slidable,within said nozzle and cooperating with said seat; a magnetcoil projecting into said. recess and surrounding said nozzle; and a housing cover-` in said recess and magnet.

n testimony whereof we aiix our signa-A nesses. v

CHARLES F. KETTERING. WILLIAM A. CHRYST. Witnesses: l'

J. W. McDoNaLQ, 0. D. Mower.. 

